This invention relates to an industrial robot hand, and more particularly, to a robot hand useful for transporting a work tool to its appropriate position, aligning the work tool during operation and isolating a robot arm from the work tool during operation.
A major difficulty in using robots for manufacturing operations is that during the manufacturing process the work tool tends to change alignment depending on the tool operation and the work piece being operated on. The reaction forces created by this alignment change can be many times the force capacity of the robot arm. This reaction force can be sufficient to overdrive the robot control systems resulting in a robot failure if the work tool is rigidly connected to the robot arm. Additionally, significant forces resulting from the work tool operation, such as the reaction forces a riveting gun creates during the riveting operation, may also be sufficient to cause robot failure.
Accordingly, it is the primary aim of this invention to provide a means for rigidly connecting a work tool to the robot arm while the tool is being positioned, then allowing the work tool to appropriately align itself during the manufacturing operation without reacting the alignment forces through the robot arm.
Another object of this invention is to provide a means for isolating the work tool from the robot arm during the manufacturing operation, thereby preventing the feedback of additional forces generated during the manufacturing operation.